Page 114 of Match Point

‘I trust Iris,’ Selma says, her eyes sparkling at me as she lets out a wistful sigh. ‘Plus, I’m a big romance fan. I’m not getting in the way of your Wimbledon fairy tale.’ She leans forwards and lowers her voice. ‘Courtney is a prat. I’m Team Kieran all the way.’

‘You know, Chris Courtney once asked Selma if she knew who he was when, as part of her job, she had to search his tennis bag on entry,’ Iris informs me.

‘He yelled right in my face and there was nothing interesting in his bag anyway,’ she adds, grumbling. She checks the time on her watch. ‘Right, I’m just going to look this way for a moment and if anyone runs in while my back is turned, hey ho.’

Winking at me, she turns away and Iris grabs my wrist to pull me through the gate.

‘Thank you!’ I call out over my shoulder as we start racing to Centre Court, Iris attempting to hold the umbrella high enough to cover both of us.

‘Where are we going?’ she asks, and I realise I don’t know the answer to her question so I slow down to a complete stop. ‘Flora, what’s going on? What are you going to do? Why did you change your mind about coming? And what is it with the bubbles?’

‘Iris, I’ll explain everything later, but I need to find a way to talk to Kieran.’

She emits a squeal of joy, grinning at me. ‘Oh my God, the bubbles were for you, weren’t they? I knew it! I knew you had to see it.’

‘Iris, focus! Where in the stands can I go to get his attention while he’s playing? The press box? I could try to get into the box where his team sits if—’

‘Flora, Flora,’ she interrupts, waving her hand in my face to get me to stop rambling, ‘he’s not on the court.’

‘Oh my God.’ I clap my hand over my mouth. ‘Is it over? Did he lose?’

‘No!’ She gestures up to the sky. ‘Play is paused while they close the Centre Court roof. The rain is due to last all afternoon. Even the weather is on your side.’

I inhale sharply, hope bubbling up my throat like lemonade. ‘Where do the players go while the roof closes?’

She shrugs. ‘I don’t know. The locker room, maybe. I know Courtney has moved into the fancy dressing room, but I’m not sure where—’

I don’t hear the end of her sentence because I’ve turned on my heel, already running as fast as I can to the outdoor entrance to the men’s locker room, the one Neil led me to just a few days before, although that feels like a lifetime ago. I finally reach the door with Iris in tow, flustered and out of breath. The security man standing beside it looks me up and down.

‘Hey!’ I wheeze, clutching my side. I really need to do more cardio. ‘Remember me?’

He studies me. ‘Maybe.’

‘I was here with Neil Damon, Kieran O’Sullivan’s coach. He gave me a pass and you let us in?’ I say hurriedly, desperate to jog his memory.

‘Oh yeah.’ He nods, breaking into a smile. ‘I remember you!’

‘Great!’ Iris exclaims, grabbing my arm. ‘So can she go in?’

He chuckles. ‘Absolutely not. This is the players’ area.’

‘Yes, but you know me. I’m not a randomer, I’m with Kieran O’Sullivan.’

‘Uh-huh, it’s nice to see you again. Do you have a pass for this area?’ he asks, amused.

‘No, but—’

‘I’m sorry, but I can’t let you in,’ he states with an apologetic smile.

‘Come on, she needs to speak to Kieran!’ Iris pleads. ‘He sent her a secret message through the TV and now she’s here to tell him how she feels!’

He quirks his brow. ‘That’s nice. I still can’t let you in.’

‘Please! Look, the cab driver gave me a free ride and the security guard at the gate let me in without a pass, just so I could talk to him!’ I plead, biting my lip. ‘Where’s your compassion? Your sense of romance? This is important!’

He narrows his eyes at me. ‘Did you just say one of our security team let you in without a pass? Because they really shouldn’t have done that.’

I blink at him. ‘No. No! Of course not. Don’t be silly. I have a ground pass somewhere, I must have lost it. I—’

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